And now, I shall read.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Salem's Lot 1979 and Salem's Lot 2024
Happy Halloween everybody! Julie's working late and the boy doesn't have school tomorrow so he's heading to one of those crazy f...
-
(2007) * First of all let me say that as far as I could tell there are absolutely no dead teenagers in this entire film. Every year just ...
12 comments:
I walk into Stop & Shop this AM and they have two shopping carts full of books.
And I got $10 off! SWEET! But of course I can't read it until tonight. No sleep for me!
Hey, I made the LA Times and the local news dressed as McGonnegal!
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-localpotterfans-pg,0,947650.photogallery?coll=la-home-center
http://www.cbs2.com/video/?id=44159@kcbs.dayport.com
As some of you may know, I have
1) Never read a page of a Harry Potter book
2) Never seen a frame of a Harry Potter movie
3) Am therefore somewhat baffled (but in a pleasant way).
I mean, if you had told me the entire world would go bananas over a series of books a few years ago I would be delighted, since we're supposed to be approaching the death of meaningful civilization or whatever and literacy is supposed to be a quaint concept from the olden days, and this is a powerful counterargument.
But these books are, well, I don't know how to put it... (Kind of weird? Okay, more than "kind of" weird?) They piss off the religious right, which is, or course, a wonderful achievement no matter who does it (the Beatles, Galileo, Socrates) but there's still something kind of, well, strange about the phenomenon.
Of course I know what it is, but I don't want to piss anyone off (including my buddies who like the books). But here's the deal: Isn't Harry Potter basically FOR CHILDREN?
Someone can come right back at me (and many have) and point out that I, myself, love Star Wars and comic books and Tex Avery cartoons. But Star Wars and comic books and Tex Avery cartoons are easier to conceptualize as "intended for adults and children too" because they don't focus exclusively on children as characters. It's like seeing an adult reading The Fellowship of the Ring (and thinking "He's/She's a geek like me; great") and seeing an adult reading The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (and thinking "Arrested development? Checking it out for his/her kid? Religious nut?")
This is the first time I've raised this point (that the Harry Potter books are FOR KIDS in years, because I immediately get slammed by everyone. Stephen King reads Harry Potter; everyone reads Harry Potter etc. I always lose the argument.
I distinctly remember the last time I got into this: in 2003 or thereabouts I was on the phone with an erstwhile friend named Eve who was gushing about the lastest Harry Potter and asked if I had read them. I was genuinely surprised by the suggestion and said, "Aren't those for kids?" There was a long pregnant pause and then Eve said something defensive about "for all ages really" and I felt bad and realized that I had to refrain from commenting.
But this is Horrorthon where I can get into stuff like this so I'm doing it again. I anticipate the next point, which is someone telling me to shut up and go read them (like I tell people to do with Lost) but this is different, because it's a big series of huge books that I'd have to carry around for ten years and make defensive excuses why I'm reading them and it's all to find out about, what, a magic kid in a British school, right? Like, a little kid with glasses...who casts spells...and hasn't discovered girls yet...and it's in England...I'm getting depressed already. Give me Luke Skywalker, the Watchmen, or George Smiley instead, any day of the week.
And (just to needlessly pull rank) I have written and published books including books for kids (well, teenagers). I am not a snob! I just don't understand.
Peace all.
It shouldn't take ten years to read them. They're easy to read because they're for kids!
Okay, good point. I stand corrected. Anyone else want to chime in?
After I'd posted this my Mom called from Massachusetts to tell me about the huge library party in the small town of Lenox last night and all the candles and books and kids; wasn't that great. Literacy lives etc. We got into the same conversation and I realized that (unlike The Sopranos, Lost, Radiohead and a million other beloved things that I came to belatedly) nobody has ever tried to get me to read the Harry Potter books. I watch three TV shows (two now that Sopranos is over) (sob) and each of them is because a friend of mine insisted that I would love it and had to watch it. (I'v e performed this funtion myself several times.) But for some reason radio silence on Harry Potter. I don't know whether this says something about me or about the books, but it's significant because I tend to have friendships filled with mutual gratitute because of all the cool stuff recommended back and forth. If people said to me "Dude, you'd love these books; shut up and read them" then I probably would. Maybe. More people are after me to get into the rest of the Stephen King "Dark Tower' books than Harry Potter.
My attitude is I can't be a buzzkill because there's only one Jordan and the entire world has "Harry Potter fever" so I'm kind of like Homer Simpson in the "Everybody Loves Ned Flanders" opening titles.
I don't know why no one is answering, but I'm on page 132!!!
All I can say is that one of my good friends here, who just let me borrow his Firefly disks, tells that same story about Buffy. He made fun of his sister for liking Buffy. He gave her all kinds of shit about Buffy. Then he watched Buffy, and now he owns the entire series and he's a completely rabid fan.
I'm not sure why these books are so addictive. But I don't really sit around and wonder why chocolate is so good, either.
Sorry - checked out yesterday after my comment. Missed all this.
I don't really have an intellectual response as to why everyone else is ga-ga over them. I think they are great stories. I love the world Rowling has created. It's not pulling a rabbit out of a hat magic. This is dark shit. The characters - even though younger than myself - are relatable. Harry's life, although magical, is really quite sad. As a character he has definitely dealt with more than most adults.
Perhaps I'm not a good person to defend this cause as I often like to read, and re-read "Childrens" books. The Anne of Green Gables series, or Eight Cousins and Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott for example. I enjoy these books because of the characters, their lives and experiences as well as for the writing.
A decision about whether you enjoy/love/dislike/are bored by a book is obviously a very personal one. So if you are not into them, that's certainly your perogative. I would suggest at least picking up one and giving it a try - then you would be more able to form an opinion on the actual story itself, as opposed to judging it based on the target audience.
On another note - AWESOME pictures Julie! I was only able to get in the mid 240's last night as I had to work this AM. Hoping to get back to it tonight as soon as I can.
You're ahead of me. I should just go to the gym and get it over with. I've been puttering about, telling myself I can't read until I go. But it's really not the greatest motivation.
I'm like a mean parent to myself: No Harry Potter until you get on the elliptical!
I understand your take on this Jordan because I used to be like, "What the hell is it about these books?" Then one X-Mas a relative gave me the first 3 books and I felt obligated to read the first one just so I could say that I did (I hate having books forced on me). Up to that point nothing about the Potter books held any appeal to me. However after getting through the first one I was instantly hooked.
I disagree with you on the whole, "Aren't these kids books?" notion. I mean most of what we cover on Horrorthon is theoretically for kids (e.g., comic book movies; Star Wars; Indiana Jones; etc). Aren't the Lord of the Rings books considered kids fare? The cool thing about the Potter books is that they're really dark and a lot of people die, which is not typical for kids books.
I'm with Jordan on this one. I enjoyed the first 3 movies but not enough to inspire me to read 5000+ pages. Now I'm just sick of hearing about Potter.
I can't dismiss them as kids stuff though simply because I found the Philip Pullman trilogy brilliant.
I like this line from J.K., "I loathe people who say, 'I always read the ending of the book first.' That really irritates me," she said. It's like someone coming to dinner, just opening the fridge and eating pudding, while you're standing there still working on the starter. It's not on."
Post a Comment